Time Theft

The theme of overemployment is a current problem in the United States. Americans are overworked. Workload has increased and society has experienced a loss of leisure. Overemployment and overworked can be defined as negative effects that occur when individuals are required to work more hours than they want to work. “Personal perceptions of workload are critical, as individuals have diverse reactions to the number of hours worked depending on their needs, lifestyle, expectations, and experiences. Individuals have different tolerances for demands and stress. While many, including professionals

Over the last two decades, American workers have been clocking more and more hours on the job, and they now work more hours than workers in any other industrialized country. Annual work hours are 4% higher than they were in 1980, amounting to an extra 1 hour and 30 minutes at work per week, on average (ILO 1999). Workers are also clocking more overtime hours. Almost one-third of the workforce regularly works more than the standard 40-hour week; one-fifth work more than 50 hours. The growth in overtime work, while helping to drive the healthy growth in output in the U.S., has unhealthy social costs. It is taking its toll not only on workers, but on their families, communities, and, ultimately in many cases, patients, customers, and

But what happens when companies start to come close to the 50 employee point? They will cut employees’ hours back to a part-time status to 30 hours in order to stay afloat (Stevens & Harler, 2012). On top of this, employees who

The first topic focused on in an article by Stimpfel et al. (2012) looked at the effect of longer shifts on nurses. Compared to the past, nurses are working twelve-hour shifts, instead of eight-hour shifts. The reason for these changes in shift lengths is for it to allow for nurses to have more flexibility in their schedules and to give them more time at home. This study revealed that the hours actually worked by nurses are unpredictable. Due to the fluctuations of patient needs and unanticipated staffing on the unit, leads to nurses having to work over their scheduled time (Stimpfel et al. 2012). This study also pointed out that there are no national policies for nurses that dictate the maximum number of hours a nurse can work. Nurses often end up working several hours over their shift because they feel forced into working those hours and thereby leading to burnout.

Rones, P. L., Ilg, R. E., & Gardner, J. M. (1997, April). Trends in Hours of Work Since the Mid-1970s. Retrieved September 16, 2016, from http://data.bls.gov/search/query/results?cx=013738036195919377644%3A6ih0hfrgl50&q=trends+in+hours+of+work+since+mid+1970s

That said, you are to refrain from clocking in more than five minutes before your scheduled shift. There are now cameras monitoring the time clock, so if your time logging seems as if it’s being falsified, we will pull the video log. Also part-time workers may not log more than 25 hours weekly and fulltime workers may not log more than 40 hours weekly. Workers exceeding these hours without prior approval from management will be disciplined or even fired.

Today, most people look to grow economically. With work days lasting anywhere from eight to twelve hours, we dedicate our time to making money. Time not doing a job is time without money. We recognize the importance in giving up our time so much that we came up with a standard social belief. Time is money.

In the medical field, residents’ work hours were reduced down to 80 hours per week in 2003, and the ACGME is still proposing further restrictions. Outside of the medical field, truck drivers are limited to solely eleven hours of driving, given a ten-hour break; along with railroad workers, who must also take a ten-hour break before starting a shift. Another time demanding profession is aviation, in which their administration allows pilots to fly only sixteen consecutive hours, and if a flight delay were to extend that pilot’s shift, then they must switch (Townsend & Anderson, 2013). It is said that the IOM only limits nurses to work twelve hours in a twenty-four hour period, although it is not implemented very well and there is research to prove it.

Everyday people struggle with setting correct work hours. When schedules are constantly changing and employers are calling other workers in, it can be stressful and difficult for the employees. Trying to balance work and other priorities such as children, require a set work schedule. When schedules are disorganized, it makes it difficult for employees that rely on child care. Employees that are also parents have to attend some school events such as parent-teacher conferences or children's doctor appointments (Vallas, R., & Boteach, M., 2014). When these employees know that there is going to be planned events such as these, they need to report to their employer so they can have time off to attend to their personal needs. While balancing work and family on a strict schedule it will help the employee and their coworkers. Having a set schedule helps reduce poverty because it creates strict schedules for the employee so they are still getting paid. Following schedules also alleviates poverty because if a person were to have two jobs, the jobs will not clash because the schedules are set. Therefore this creates a strict schedule so the people can work and get paid so they aren’t facing

For the 35-hour workweek we leaned towards position number 4 which was to require businesses to pay 1.5 times a worker’s wage above 44 hours per week. 44 hours per week is about a 9AM-5PM shift, which is a pretty standard work schedule. 8 hours a day is common.

There are constantly problems arising from poor time management. Last week, a welder took too many breaks and did not complete his task. Yesterday, an ironworker did not complete his assignment, because he took an extended lunch.

Nearly half of the sector’s workfore is part-time much higher that 28% across the economy as a whole – and are in pubd, bars and nightclubs 58% fewer are in travel services 23%.

Theft comes in many forms in the workplace; taking a company-issued iPad home for personal use, taking money that is not yours, or taking an extended lunch than what is allowed.

A vast study conducted during the Soviet Era in Russia gives an eye opening perspective of time theft in early years. During the Soviet Era, Russia was faced with “…supply disruptions, overstaffing, alcoholism, time theft, second-economy job, worker absenteeism, and so forth”.(Gregory 242). In the studies conducted by the Soviet Interview Project (SIP), Paul R. Gregory goes into great depth about the historical problems associated with time theft. In the 1960’s the SIP conducted a specific survey towards employees on the matter of time theft. The initial questions asked by the SIP were if individuals used work time for personal business. If the individual stated that they did, they were also asked how often each week they used their employer’s time for personal

But what are the consequences for the employees ? The new system scheduling time work is totally irregular and unpredictable which may decrease the employee’s job stability and potentially create financial hardships. The result was a computerized system that totally